Torn Decisions
by Ari Gozen
Summary: Kanda Tomoe's life is dedicated to kendo, but she has a secret passion for tennis. After becoming close to Sanada, Tomoe has a decision to make: forget tennis and Sanada, or leave behind the life she loves. SanadaxOC
1. For Your Smile

**A/N-** This is a Prince of Tennis fanfiction, despite the fact that there is Kanda Yuu. (note- Kanda Yuu is from the manga D. Gray-Man) I didn't put this story in the crossover section because he isn't one of the main characters, and it centrals around Prince of Tennis more. Please remember to review!

**A/N-** I do not own Prince of Tennis, or Kanda Yuu.

* * *

"You're too slow, Tomoe."

Kanda Yuu dodged his younger sister's katana easily as he swung his own down towards her shoulder. There was the sound of steel against steel as Tomoe blocked, and then pulled away. The members of the Rikkai Dai high school kendo club looked on with amazement as they watched their captain and his sister demonstrate what it was like to fight with actual katana. At last, the action ceased when Tomoe lost her balance while blocking and fell, her brother's blade immediately pointed at her throat.

There was a steady round of applause as Kanda withdrew his sword and reached out a hand to help his sister stand up. "Your footwork needs practice," he said to her, noticing that she wasn't too happy about losing.

Even though she lost, Tomoe was one of the most skilled at kendo in the school, aside from her brother. With her sleek black hair pulled back into a ponytail and the ease with which her thin figure moved Tomoe was indeed the essence of grace of the kendo club. No doubt it was because she had learned from the best.

After everyone had settled down from the excitement of their match, the captain then instructed each of them to find a partner to practice with. Most everyone found their partner immediately, except for Tomoe. Her brother had to go around and monitor everyone. And so, she was forced to spar with… Sanada Genchirou.

Before then, Tomoe had hardly noticed him. Sanada rarely made appearances at the kendo club because of his position on the tennis team. To be honest, she was curious as to how skilled at kendo he was.

Kanda's voice announced the start of the sparring session, and the room was immediately filled with movement and the sound of wooden staffs clashing against each other. Sanada and Tomoe fought in the middle of the room, and after a while many had stopped to watch them.

The two appeared equally leveled as they each attacked and blocked in turn. The fight seemed as though it would go on forever, until both of them swung simultaneously, their staffs stopped just an inch away from each other's necks.

"It's a draw," declared the kendo captain as a signal for the two to withdraw.

Sanada and Tomoe stepped away. Out of politeness, the first-year high school girl bowed slightly and said, "Thank you for being my opponent. You're very good, Sanada-senpai." In the corner, she noticed her brother eying the both of them coldly.

* * *

Later on, Tomoe was walking down the hallway, dressed back in her school uniform, when she spotted her brother speaking to Sanada about something. When she approached them, they halted their conversation.

"Nii-sama, what are you doing?" she asked her brother suspiciously. Everyone knew that Kanda Yuu was rather protective of his sister, and this was possibly one of those moments.

"It's nothing, Tomoe. Come on, we're going home," replied her brother curtly.

"I have to get to tennis practice anyway," said Sanada dismissively. However, just as he began to walk away, a voice called out to him.

"Sanada-senpai, is it alright if I go with you to the tennis practice?" It was Tomoe. Beside her, Kanda looked at his sister incredulously. As her older brother, he didn't approve of her going anywhere with Sanada. In fact, it was surprising Kanda hadn't already pulled out his katana because Sanada was standing within ten feet of her.

Sanada was equally surprised. "Wh-what?" Had he heard correctly? "Um, I guess you can watch the practice as long as you don't interfere," he finally replied, proceeding to walk out towards the tennis courts. Tomoe followed behind him, but not after glancing back at her brother. He seemed to give her a look of both defeat and disappointment.

* * *

The other regulars were already practicing when Sanada arrived at the courts. "Sanada, you're late," called one of the regulars, walking up to him.

"Ah, sorry Seiichi."

"Nevermind that," dismissed Yukimura Seiichi. "Who's this?" he then asked, glancing at Tomoe.

Sanada paused nervously for a moment, and then said, "This is Kanda Tomoe. She asked to be able to watch our tennis practice."

Tomoe smiled slightly at Yukimura. "I hope you'll let me stay. I'm very interested in tennis, and I'd like to watch Rikkai Dai's famed regulars play." Her honest smile and expression hid the underlying flattery, but Yukimura payed no attention to it. He raised an eyebrow slightly at her words, but agreed nonetheless.

And so, practice continued normally, the regulars doing their best to pretend to not notice the new girl in their midst. However, that was impossible once she spoke up. After watching Kirihara defeat Niou, Tomoe asked, "Yukimura-senpai, is it alright if I play a quick match with Kirihara-san?"

At this, all head turned to her. Why was this girl, who seemed so quiet yet confident, asking to play Kirihara, one of Rikkai Dai's demons? Kirihara himself seemed even more surprised. "Eh? You… wait, you can play tennis?"

Tomoe nodded in reply to Kirihara's question. Seeing this, Yukimura said, "I don't see why not. Go ahead, Kanda-san."

The girl's face suddenly darkened. "I'm sorry, Yukimura-senpai, but please don't call me that. I'm just Tomoe-san." There was no response to this, other than an amused glance from Yukimura, who suddenly tossed a racquet at her.

She caught it with surprising ease. It was apparent that this would be an interesting game.

* * *

Kirihara served the ball and it flew across the court past Tomoe, who didn't even attempt to return it. The other regulars stared at her curiously, beginning to doubt her tennis abilities.

"Speed, 151 kilometers per hour. Accuracy, 87%. That wasn't your normal speed, was it, Kirihara-san?" said Tomoe, nonchalantly tapped her racquet on her shoulder, completely relaxed and satisfied with herself.

Kirihara was dumbfounded. "How-how did she know that?" he muttered to himself in astonishment. Yukimura and Yanagi, however, only smirked.

"That, Kirihara," began the tennis captain, "is Tomoe-san's playing style. By just looking at the shot, she can determine its speed and accuracy. By reading your body movements, your footwork, she can even predict what shot you are going to use. That is, simply put, analytical tennis. Am I correct, Tomoe-san?"

Tomoe nodded, her brown eyes sparkling with a newfound delight. Even so, Jackal remarked, "I still don't think that's a very effective style. It doesn't help to be able to read movements if you can't even return the shot."

Just then, a tennis ball grazed past his ear at shocking speed, hit the ground, and bolted through the air, lodging itself between the links of the fence behind them.

Jackal gaped first at the ball, then at Tomoe. "Ah, _gomen_, senpai," she called to him with a completely innocent smile.

"Yanagi, I'd like to ask you a question."

"_Hai_?"

"Do you think she would make a good addition to the team?"

* * *

Much to Kanda's relief, Tomoe came home perfectly safe, although later than he had expected. He was prompted to ask, "What took you so long to come back home?" Her 'observation' of the tennis team couldn't possible have taken that long.

"I was playing tennis, that's all. Is there anything wrong with that?" replied Tomoe, avoiding her brother's eyes with a sort of puzzling defiance. There was an unnerving silence for a few moments, until Tomoe broke it with her sudden words. "Nii-sama, I'm thinking about joining the tennis team at school."

At first, her brother's only response was a surprised stare, and then an exclamation of astonishment.

"What?! Tomoe, you can't join the tennis team! You already have kendo and martial arts."

For all their lives, the two siblings had been taught martial arts from their father. When he suddenly passed away, Tomoe's new mentor had become her brother. The sports seemed to dominate their lives. Until now.

The younger sister nervously pushed her hair behind her ear, giving her brother a clearer glimpse of her eyes, tainted with a kind of shy and timid passion. "Well, I though I could take a break from kendo for a while."

That was it. Kanda couldn't take anymore. "No, Tomoe. I won't allow you join tennis," he concluded, raising his voice.

"You won't allow me? Since when did you control my life? You're not Father, Nii-sama!" she shouted back at him, turning back towards the door. There was no way she could bear to be in the same room as him. However, just as she was about to slide open the paper screen door, her brother's voice reached her, quiet and menacing.

"If you quit kendo, you destroy everything Father worked for."

The hand hanging at her waist tightened suddenly into a fist, and suspense hung in the air like a threatening predator. Making her decision, she slid the door open and then slammed it shut behind her.

* * *

Outside, Tomoe ran, rain beginning to fall slowly onto the ground. It didn't matter where she was going, as long as she got away from her brother for a while. Her footsteps echoed across the wet pavements as second passed, minutes. She finally stopped to lean against one of the walls that lined the sidewalk, her breath quick and shallow, the rain mixing with the tears falling from her eyes.

_Where am I? Why am I even here?_ Her thoughts raced, lost and confused behind a curtain of tears. She suddenly recalled her brother's words. _Could he… was he right? Am I wrong in wanting to join tennis?_

_Have I… betrayed Father?_

It was all so confusing. Her new love of tennis had turned her brother, the one person she could fully trust, against her. And now here she was, alone, lost and soaked in rain. The wet fabric of her uniform clung tightly to her skin as she hugged herself, chilling her to the bone.

_I want to go home._

"Tomoe-san, are you alright?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Tomoe looked up and was surprised to none other than… "Sa-sanada-senpai?" she stuttered, hardly believing her eyes. Out of all places and situation, she had to meet him here? At the time it seemed like a coincident, but an inaudible voice inside her said it was fate.

"It's raining hard; why are you standing out here?" Sanada inquired, moving closer to her so that the umbrella he held sheltered both of them from the rain.

Tomoe blushed slightly as he looked up at him, but then averted her eyes towards the ground. "I don't know. I don't even understand why I'm out here in the first place," she sighed. This was followed by a short, unexpected coughing fit.

Before she could even move, Sanada had slipped off his own jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

This reminded Tomoe of her brother, and even more so when Sanada said, "You'll catch a cold, standing in the rain without a jacket."

_I want Nii-sama to forgive me._

Placing a hand on her shoulder, the second-year high school boy sighed. "I think it'd be best for you to get inside, or you really will get sick. My house is just around the corner. You can stay there until I call your brother."

With this, a gentle smile played on his lips as he glanced at the girl standing next to him. For a short moment, their eyes met and Tomoe hoped that, through the rain, Sanada had not seen the faint pink that had emerged in her cheeks. The smile he gave her had warmed her much more than the jacket.

_I don't want to be alone again._

* * *

Sanada led Tomoe inside, still marveling at how he had only been going to the store when he had found her alone like that. But where was her brother? He hardly ever left her side. Oh well, there would be time for questions.

"Arigatou… Sanada-senpai."

He turned suddenly towards Tomoe, who was still hugging the jacket around her shoulders. Her lips had hardly moved, yet he could hear her words clearly. "Ah, don't mention it. It's not like I could have just left you out in the rain like that."

"No… thank you for everything. For being my opponent, for bringing me to the tennis practice, for lending me your jacket… and thank you… for your smile."


	2. Trust Me

There was a moment of awkward silence as the color rose in both of their faces. Tomoe was afraid that she had somehow offended Sanada and embarrassed herself, when in truth he had only been caught off guard by her words. However, once her voice had registered in his head, Sanada was at a loss for a reply.

Feeling foolish, he finally managed, "You should probably go dry off, Tomoe-san. I'll go get you a towel."

Sanada nervously left the room, and he could feel Tomoe watching as he walked down the hallway. After a few moments, her gaze lifted.

Knowing that she would not see, Sanada glanced over his shoulder at Tomoe. An unexpected feeling rushed over him, and the second-year high school student could not help but smile.

_Has she always been this…_

"Eh, Genchirou, who's your friend?"

Sanada turned around and found himself facing his older brother, Taichirou. "This is… Tomoe-san," he stammered in reply.

"Maa, she's pretty cute," Taichirou remarked, brushing past his brother towards Tomoe.

Before the younger Sanada could stop him, Taichirou had already reached their guest, a mischievous grin on his face.

Stopping to stand in front of the girl, Taichirou smiled and asked, "You're Tomoe, right?" He made it sound as though he hadn't just confirmed her name with Genchirou, who was standing behind him.

Tomoe, taken by surprise, nodded hesitantly.

"And who might you be?" she asked, casting a curious glance first at Taichirou, and then at the Sanada standing behind him.

"Ah, where are my manners?" My name is Sanada Taichirou, Genchirou's older brother. But just so it's less confusing, you can call me Taichirou-kun."

He winked at Tomoe before turning around slightly to read his brother's expression. His younger brother seemed to be hiding, as he had expected, a look of frustration.

"Maa, but who would've thought that Genchirou would bring home someone as pretty as you?"

Taichirou reached out and tugged gently at a few strand of Tomoe's hair, circling them around his finger. He then let go, but suddenly wrapped his arms around Tomoe.

She looked just as shocked as Sanada, whose eyes seemed to widen and an expression of surprise fleeted across his face.

"Taichirou, what are you doing?" called a different, much older voice. "Moreover, who is this?"

The guilty Taichirou immediately let go. "Sorry, Otoo-sama. This is-"

"Kanda Tomoe," Sanada interrupted, "She was outside and I brought her in so she would get soaked."

"She was standing out in the rain? Well, it's lucky she's here now. There's a storm going on outside." Their father's tone was completely leveled, but that soon changed.

"Wait, _Kanda_ Tomoe? Her last name is _Kanda_?" Sanada's father turned to face Tomoe.

"So you're… you're Akihito's daughter."

This caused more confusion.

"You… you knew my father?" Tomoe stammered, completely perplexed by this new discovery. Her face then lit up with slight understanding. "You're Honjou-sama, aren't you?"

The man named Honjou nodded. "I more than knew your father. I was one of his closest friends. I even helped him teach Yuu martial arts when that boy was a kid… You were too young to remember, though."

That reminded Tomoe of her brother. "Ah! Nii-sama! He must be worried sick about me. I should probably call him."

She reached for where her phone would have been, but realized her bag had been left at home.

"Can I use your phone?"

***

The three Sanadas watched as Tomoe dialed her brother's cell phone number and brought the phone to her ear.

"Hello? Ah, Nii-sama-"

"Tomoe! I was looking everywhere, but I couldn't find you…" His voice sounded almost sad on the other end. "Where are you?"

"Oh… I'm at Sanada-senpai's house."

"What?! How can you be at a house full of men?"

"Nii-sama…" Tomoe paused for a moment. "Honjou-sama is here, though."

There was silence on the other end. Finally, "Let me talk to him."

Tomoe obediently handed the phone over to Honjou and waited for their conversation to end. Once Honjou hung up, he said, "Your brother said that, because of the storm, you can stay here for tonight, Tomoe-san."

"She can sleep in my room!" Taichirou immediately offered.

* * *

When she approached Sanada Genchirou's room, Tomoe's hair was completely dry and she was wearing a set of clothes that Honjou had given her.

Sanada's room was where, they had decided, she would spend the night. Taichirou's room wasn't even a considerable option, as neither his brother nor father trusted him.

Once inside the room, Tomoe saw that a futon and blanket had already been prepared for her. From her observation of the room, it appeared that Sanada would sleep a good distance away from her. Apparently, he wasn't at all like his brother.

"I'm sorry about Aniki's behavior."

Sanada was standing in the entranceway of the room, a somewhat apologetic look on his face.

"But, Tomoe-san, doesn't it bother you to have to stay here?"

Tomoe thought for a moment, and then said, "I guess it does bother me a little… But your father was a really good friend of my father, so I guess it's just that I trust him.

_She trusts_ him_. Of course it's because of Otoo-sama. It has nothing to do with… me._

The two said no more on the matter, and, after a half hour or so, quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Sanada opened his eyes, woken up by the storm. It seemed to have gotten much worse than just a drizzle of rain.

He couldn't tell what time it was, but a quick glance at his clock told him that it was an hour past midnight.

However, Sanada also noticed Tomoe wasn't asleep, either. She was sitting up, her knees brought up to her chest and her hands were held over her ears. She looked, Sanada could hardly believe, _scared_.

"Tomoe-san, are you alright?" he asked, walking over and kneeling in front of her. It struck him as strange that he had asked that exact same question earlier.

At first there was no reply. Then, Tomoe slowly opened her eyes, which had been closed tight with fear, and was about to say something when the sound of thunder and a flash of lightning caused her to draw back again.

"You're… you're afraid of storms like this, aren't you?" he breathed, almost startled to see this side of her. Tomoe was normally calm and perfectly composed, but now she seemed completely different.

He wanted to help her, not being able to bear seeing her like that.

"Don't worry about the storm. You'll be fine, Tomoe-san."

He tried to gently pull her hands away from her ears, but the thunder seemed to be too much for her.

"Trust me. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise," he whispered to her, surprising even himself with those words.

This time when he pulled at her wrists, Tomoe reluctantly gave in and let Sanada take her hands.

She opened her eyes and found herself staring into Sanada's dark ones. For that moment, Tomoe forgot all about the storm. She felt… safer with him.

A sudden flash of lightning cast a wide silhouette and caused the room to grow dark as Tomoe closed her eyes again.

"I promise," Sanada reassured, his voice strangely quiet.

In the silhouette of the lightning, Sanada leaned in closer and softly kissed Tomoe's lips.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

I'm sorry that I haven't updated this story in a while! Also, forgive me for this chapter's short length. I was trying to continue it the best way I can. If you have any comments, criticism, praise, ideas, just review or send me a message! (I take constructive criticism, so don't be afraid!)

If any of you are wondering about Sanada's brother and father, he actually does have an older brother. His name however, is just something my friend made up.

Anyway, thank you for reading!


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